THE fight to restore Grange Lido's iconic pool will continue despite council approval of a 'light touch' restoration plan which will see the pool area filled in.

That was the vow from the Save Grange Lido campaign after South Lakeland District Council's cabinet passed proposals for a £2m scheme to restore the derelict attraction.

The group welcomed SLDC's decision to back a restoration of the complex, but made it clear they fundamentally opposed the proposal to fill in the pool.

"This element of the plan risks de-railing the whole project," said SGL spokesman Darren Milby.

" A lido without a pool is not a lido at all. No one would visit an infilled lido and it would soon become neglected.

"It would be a magnet for vandals and anti-social behaviour as has happened with other infilled lidos.”

However, SLDC said while they were pleased to be able to press ahead with a scheme they said was urgently needed to save the derelict complex from further deterioration, they were open to dialogue from interested parties on the project and future management of the lido.

"We must stress that any interested parties must be able to demonstrate a robust business case, prove they are able to raise the additional funding required, remove any need for ongoing public subsidy and have the agreement of Grange Town Council,” said SLDC deputy leader and Housing, People and Innovation portfolio holder Cllr Jonathan Brook.

Opened in 1932, the large salt water pool surrounded by attendant facilities proved extremely popular with locals and visitors, but after a period of decline and rising maintenance costs, it was closed in 1993 and has stood derelict since then.

However, the art deco lido was granted grade II listed status in 2011 and in the same year, the Save Grange Lido group was formed and has gathered support since then.

The group have drawn up detailed plans for a complete rejuvenation of the facility including a full restoration of the pool.

And when SLDC proposed an alternative 'light touch' scheme which centred on landscaping the area and restoring the buildings but crucially also involved the infilling of the pool, the group launched a petition demanding the pool be included in any restoration scheme which gained more than 18,000 signatures.

The campaigners travelled in force to the SLDC Cabinet meeting at Kendal Town Hall yesterday, Wednesday, January 23, where leading campaigner David Dawson pleaded for the Cabinet to halt plans to infill the pool.

"Such a plan will be disastrous, and once filled in, no matter how many times it is said to be only temporary, we all know the pool will be gone forever," he told the meeting.

And Cllr James Airey drew applause from the public gallery when he said he backed their pans after being initially sceptical.

"There has never been a better opportunity to rejuvenate the area and we should not let it pass," he said.

However, Cllr Brook said the council's plan represented a realistic way forward and a"historic" chance to address the issue rather than sit back and allow the further deterioration of the lido which would cause increasing problems for future administrations.

"The plan is viable, sustainable and acceptable one and is the most appropriate way forward," he told the meeting.

The proposal was unanimously agreed by the Cabinet, but Cllr Brook stressed that they remained open to discussions with interested parties including the Save Grange Lido group with regards to the plans and to a future management structure of the site.

The district council said it would continue to work with the local town council, the Grange Lido Community Interest Company and other interested parties to secure the future of the lido site in a way that is sympathetic to its listed status.

“We must stress that any interested parties must be able to demonstrate a robust business case, prove they are able to raise the additional funding required, remove any need for ongoing public subsidy and have the agreement of Grange Town "Council,” said Cllr Brook in a statement following the meeting.

"Refurbishment will be an important step forward which will hopefully lead to a solution which will be viable, sustainable and acceptable to the residents of Grange and the wider district of South Lakeland,”

SLDC’s planning committee will now consider the application and listed building consent will be required in order to carry out the stabilisation and structural repairs.

The plan will also need the approval of Grange Town Council and the £2m funding will require full SLDC approval.